Advice for a couple weeks in Fiji ON A BUDGET

Hi everyone!

As part of a RTW trip, I'm planning on spending a couple of weeks in Fiji.

I'm a 22 year old french guy, I'll be travelling solo, and I'm looking for any scenic place (my main interest is photography), I'd like to do some hikes as well. And well, just chill out on the beach...
I should maybe mention that it'll probably be sometime in June(2013), and I'll be flying into and out of Nadi.

I've been going through many forums, but I can't seem to decide what to do.
My main issue is that I'll be on a tight budget, so I originally thought I'd stick to Viti Levu, but I've seen many people saying that it was not that good. I understand it's not as good as the smaller islands, but is it really "bad" ?

If going to an other island is a must (and if i can afford it), which would you recommend, considering my interests and budget?

Regarding accommodation, i'm not picky, the cheaper the better! Any size dorm will do :)

Thank you!

the main island of Viti Levu is not really that bad - not as bad as people make out on the Fiji forums that are on the www

there is lots to see and do on Viti Levu - the corals and sea life around the coast of Viti Levu are worth a look but are not as good as out on the islands but don't let that one thing put you off experiencing Viti Levu, you can have a great time exploring Viti Levu especially for a first time visitors.

http://www.fijitraveltips.com/index.php/things-to-do/activities-on-the-coral-coast-fiji

You can travel from Nadi to Suva safely and very cheaply on the local buses and make many stops along the way exploring. You can even consider travelling around the whole island by local bus making stops along the way.

accommodation that offer low rates to consider are
smugglers cove
mango bay
the beachouse
danny's village homestay
Vale Ni Tadra Homestay

well worth it to spend a couple of nights in a homestay so you can ask many questions from the locals who will assist you and tell you the must see places in each local area that you visit. Many tourist never get to see the "must see places" because they don't venture out of the resorts and interact with the locals.

hope this helps

Visiting west, north and east Viti Levu will give you the best indication of how Fijians live without paying for tours.
'Local' accommodation (as opposed to tourist accomodation) is cheap and the circum navigation of the island by bus is a useful trip over (say) 3 days.

The Yasawa Islands are the tourist mecca. They are very beautiful. But you are constrained to tourist accomodation.

Cheers,
Peter

What is a "tight budget" as a dollar figure? There are lots of cheap places off of Viti Levu.

The main island is not bad, but it simply isn't as good as the other islands. If you have a couple of weeks, you'd be insane to not spend at least some of that time in the Yasawas/Mamanucas, or somewhere further afield.

Thank you for all the advice!! Very useful info :)

I haven't fixed a budget yet, but I'd say a maximum of FJ$1000 would be ideal. Is that realistic for 2weeks? Is there any way to fit a short island trip on this budget?

"Is there any way to fit a short island trip on this budget?"
Not a chance if that's your maximum. Even the mainland will be a challenge with that budget - it'll cover a dorm bed, meals, and limited transport, but probably not activities, drinking, shopping, etc.

I thought so..
What about shortening the trip to 10 days, and increasing the budget to, say, FJ$1200 ?
I don't plan on doing any shopping, and I can easily go without drinking (except water obviously!). Regarding activities, renting snorkeling gear might be the only thing I'll do...

That'd certainly give you some more options, possibly a day trip to a nearby island. You'd have to work out the exact prices to see what's feasible.

Given your limited budget, but wish to see attractive scenery, meet people, mingle with the culture, enjoy beautiful beaches, eat well but affordably, then have a look at Rarotonga as an alternative Pacific destination. It's also considerably photogenic with its rugged mountainous interior and white sandy beaches around a small island (31 kms around). Population 12,000 residents.

International Backpackers provides a good standard of dorm accommodation at NZD$18 per night/adult. Full kitchen and laundry facilites, large open area to socialise. Kavera lagoon which is barely 2 minutes from the hostel is one of the loveliest sandy beach/swimming lagoons found around the island. Free international airport pickups, $10 for the return transfer. Great island bus service, buy the 10 trip concession, or hire a cycle, or scooter (requires a Cook Is licence). For nightlife there are 2 pub-crawl buses,or make your own fun at the hostel. Plenty of local fresh fruits and veg, nearest market stall is right beside the side road leading to the hostel. Fresh tuna fish/other game fish available in the fish-shops and supermarkets. Local eggs, local pork, locally-produced sausages. Plenty of cheap eats at the takeaways and market stalls located in Punanga Nui. There are some 6 or more budget accommodation properties similar to IB, with more onsite facilities but more expensive too.

One weekly flight from LAX, one weekly flight from Sydney, one weekly flight from Papeete, with near daily flights to/from NZ. Just a thought, but if you are struggling with meeting your budget on a big island, switch to a smaller destination with a wider variety of scenery and attractions at your fingertips!

Edited by: lagoon

Well, it's interesting that you should say that. Rarotonga is actually my next stop, so thanks for all the information!

Now, do you think doing Viti Levu, and Rarotonga would be redundant? Would you recommend skipping the Fiji?

Rather than trying to visit 2 Pacific nations on a very tight shoestring budget, I think you would be better to focus on spending some quality time within one country and have a little tucked away so that you can afford to splurge on a beer and burger when out with new friends. Also, if you dream of taking a side trip to Aitutaki island if the right price pops up for airfares or a package deal when you reach Raro, at least you can make this possible without having to sigh about wishing you had more funds to do so. Aitutaki lagoon scenery is stupendous, and there is a choice of really good budget accommodation places, as well as the island being so inviting to explore. Stay nearer to town though, since this is the area for cheap eats and proximity to a night out at the internet cafe bar or around the wharf area.

As I mentioned there are other hostels around Raro other than Backpackers International. But for the price offered, and its proximity to a gorgeous beach and that fruit and veg stall, I think this is a pretty good lead-in property.

@charleli
Nadi-Raro is an expensive connection, how can you afford that stop on a limited budget?

Thank you Lagoon, sounds more reasonable, and Aitutaki looks amazing! I'll do some more research and probably start a new thread if I need more advice, since this one is in the Fiji branch...

@H2ooh, I was planning on swimming there :)
Seriously though, my RTW ticket offers unlimited stopovers, so this connection would have been included!

Make sure your RTW ticket is with airlines that fly to the countries you want to go to. Airlines flying within the Pacific are limited, as are their routes.

Oh I know, but there's an online planner, so I know where/from where I can fly! There's only 3 airlines, including New Zealand Airlines, so I have quite a few options for the Pacific Islands :)

http://www.thegreatescapade.com/ ;)
They seem to be great value, starting at around £1000(without taxes), you get a limited number of options for your flights, but it's still pretty good, especially for Asia/Pacific!
Only from England though!

Edited by: charleli

Where do you get the RTW tickets? I want some....

The trip planner on that website is completely outdated. It still shows a direct Nadi to Rarotonga connection as well as direct flights from Apia/Samoa to Los Angeles and/or Tonga. All these connections are not existing anymore, since January 2011! So beware of trusting that offer.It will not work that way.

Fiji is definitely cheaper than the Cooks, and its main island a LOT bigger (thus more diverse and interesting) than Rarotonga, so if you are thinking of skipping one nation, skip the Cooks, not Fiji.
Your budget is easily enough for budget travel aroiund Viti Levu, and you could also visit one of those neighboring islands that have public links to it, and cheap accommodation (like Ovalau).
In the Cooks, you have to take $$$ flights just to get off small Rarotonga, in Fiji, cheap ferries (to non-tourist islands) are plentiful.

My sources tell me that Fiji is increasingly becoming expensive, while the Cook Islands offers good value because the NZ dollar is lower against main currencies.

Nevertheless, Rarotonga and Aitutaki are very beautiful islands, with a good standard of visitor accommodation located in prime areas. Having easy access and an affordable mode on transport on both Raro and Aitutaki makes for great bases to pursue photography. TA has voted Titikaveka beach on Rarotonga second best for 2012 in their beach category, with Aitutaki third. Bora bora came in first. Its not surprising that all 3 are located in Polynesia. And no Pacific country can emulate our fast hula dancing or drumming! Again, excellent photo opportunities. Savvy visitors already know to buy their fares and accommodation to Aitutaki via package deals sold on Rarotonga.

In the Cooks, you have to take $$$ flights just to get off small Rarotonga
These fares are on small local airlines, definitely not included in your round the world deal.

I checked out the site the OP referred to.

It doesn't appear the site offers anything special other than access to an obsolete trip planner. The contact numbers on the site for booking or information are for Air New Zealand and Virgin Air.

Good luck with this one, I don't think it's gonna happen!

Thanks for your advice, looks like it's not gonna be an easy decision...

Concerning TheGreatEscapade, indeed you have to book via Virgin Atlantic or NZAirlines. I called them the other day, and they confirmed the fares and conditions, as soon as my first draft itinerary is complete, I have to call them back with the details so that they can give me an estimate of the taxes and whatnot.
It's not well known, especially compared to OneWorld or StarAlliance, but I managed to find some people saying they did their RTW trip via this website without any problem...

Maybe some routes of the planner are outdated, but if it's the case, they'll confirm when I call with the dates of my flights. I'm not saying it's a sure thing, that's why I need to finish my itinerary asap in order to call them and have something more concrete!!

My sources tell me that Fiji is increasingly becoming expensive

I wonder what "your sources" are.
If anything Fiji, which has always been cheaper than the Cooks (or any other Pacific country for that matter), has only been getting cheaper over the years as its currency has been losing value against all western currencies.

If you want to stick to the mainland, I could recommend Mango Bay as a cheap enough place to stay. I wrote more about it here:

If you want a slightly more organic experience, Kuata is an eco resort run by a local Fijian village. Definitely felt a bit more off the beaten track.

My review of Kuata and Mango Bay should shed a little more light.